In many fields it is important to be able to manipulate images in a timely manner. The manipulation becomes more computer intensive as the resolution, size and numbers of colors in the image increases. In time critical fields, such as during a surgical procedure, the manipulation may be required to be in substantially real-time, leading to further demands on computer resources used to present the image. In some cases, in order to maintain real-time behavior, the quality of the image may be reduced, for example by reducing the resolution of the image or by reducing the number of colors in the image.